Bad Mouth

by Angela McCallister

  “There’ll be a civil war.” Dread laced her words, and he couldn’t reassure her.

  “Yes,” he said. “Even after all we’ve done to stop it, there’ll be a war.”

  Chapter Thirty-one

  Val wanted to crawl out of her skin. She’d awoken ages ago and had spent the daylight hours typing up a million and one reports on the laptop she’d had Alice send her. When that had been done, she’d filled even more time making phone calls. Hopefully it was enough to waylay the legislation she’d ignorantly written.

  She’d spoken to all the right people, ones she thought would modify the bill. She’d even enlisted her parents to use their influence. It made sense that instead of eliminating all transformations, the bill should specify vampire delegates to judge whether the subjugates had assimilated adequately for transformation and should limit the time allotted to assimilate. That would save people like Ezra from themselves and take the choice away from them.

  After that, she’d paced on the balcony waiting for Kade to awaken. Last night, she hadn’t had time to talk much with him before sunrise took him from her. He’d fought it like a champ, but couldn’t stop his muscles from going lax and his words from slurring. Eventually, he’d stopped making any sense, and she’d ushered him to bed, half carrying him again.

  Things could have gone very differently last night. He could have died, which made her rethink her position on transformation. Would it be so terrible to live almost forever if she had him at her side? The image of his despair when he’d thought he’d lost her haunted her all day. She would force that on him with her death. He’d lived nearly five centuries without love. He might never find it again after she passed on. And did she really want him to when she could be with him instead?

  She jumped when Kade’s hard, muscled arms came around her. He squeezed lightly, pressing his unshaven face into her neck to kiss her. The shock of rough and soft made her skin tingle.

  “I could wake up to this forever,” he said. He turned her in his arms and tucked her against his chest. She felt his chin rub against the top of her head, and then he burrowed his nose into her hair. “I love the way you smell.”

  “Kade?” She would have said more, but the words stuck in her throat.

  “Hmm?” He kept nuzzling. Oh, he made it so very hard to concentrate.

  “Would we ever end up like them?”

  His body tensed against her. She had no doubt he knew exactly what she’d asked. He leaned away to see her face. Mixed emotions crossed his.

  “Never. They were warped before they were made.”

  “Is it painful?”

  He stroked the hair back from her face. “Terribly.”

  “What if I’m not the same?”

  “It never works like that.”

  She let that sink in, all the while feeling as if she walked a narrow ledge. Which side would she fall on? It shouldn’t matter. He’d catch her wherever she fell. Her breath faltered and her heartbeat along with it. He would catch her. She’d bet her life on it. She trusted him completely.

  If she trusted him with her heart, it wouldn’t be a stretch to trust him with her life.

  “Would I be Legion?”

  The tension in his body ramped up, but his gaze softened and he cupped the back of her head. “The Rex can’t be with a Legion, Val. And I intend to be with you until eternity ends.”

  “Oh.” Now he’d thoroughly confused her. He’d wanted her to transform, but if she did, she couldn’t be with him.

  “If you transform, I want you every second of every century.”

  “But how—”

  “You’ll be of the Dominorum, a Domina, like Evangeline, only not the crazy, evil-bitch version,” he said.

  She fought a grin and arched an eyebrow. “How can you do that?”

  He smiled softly and lowered his voice to a murmur. “I’m going to tell you something, and you can’t share this with a single soul. Not one. The Legions don’t even know this secret. It’s a dangerous secret. Promise?”

  “Yes, I promise.” She tilted her head.

  “The Dominorum are a direct bloodline from our original race. Therefore, to make a Dominus, the adjuvant must be a Dominus. A blood exchange must occur. That’s the difference, Val. When I make a Legion, I use my will to initiate the change. That’s the end. With creation of Dominorum, the new vampire’s first feeding must be from Dominus adjuvant.”

  “Why is that a secret?”

  “What do you think would happen if anyone, even the Legion, knew the value of Dominorum blood?”

  Good point. The Slavers would be the tip of the iceberg. “What about the Legion adjuvants?”

  “None of them know. They can’t know.”

  She nodded and turned back to the balcony railing. She let the information swirl in her thoughts and in her heart. There would be no going back if she decided to transform. How she’d changed from when she’d first met Kade such a short time ago. This option had once been poison to her. Now she thought she wanted this. Yes, she wanted this. She wanted to be with Kade until eternity ended.

  “Will you be the one to do it?”

  There it was, the joy she’d waited to see in him, but some other worry shadowed it. He’d wanted this the most. Had he changed his mind?

  “Like I’d let anyone else put their lips on you?” He grinned. “And when I bite, it’ll be right here.” He rubbed the inside of her upper thigh, brushing his thumb against her core. A shot of heat made her press into his hand. He laughed, and she slapped his rock-hard biceps.

  “Then I’ll do it. I’ll put an application in.”

  He nodded, tight-lipped, and then he looked out over the Sound. “You don’t need an application, Val. The agreement with the VLO died with the Ancients. A new one needs to be drafted. Until then, I decide who transforms and who doesn’t.”

  Her pulse jumped a few beats. So she could do it right away. The thought thrilled and terrified her. She wanted it, but she didn’t feel ready. In fact, it felt an awful lot like the time she’d gone skydiving at Alice’s encouragement-slash-badgering. At the point of no return, she’d wanted to crawl over her tandem instructor to get back into the plane.

  “Today then?”

  “If you wish.” His eyes dimmed. She pulled him around to face her. He didn’t quite meet her eyes, looking instead about shoulder-level.

  “Kade, I thought you wanted this.”

  “I did—I do.” He took her hands in his, and his gaze fixed on their joined fingers. “Can I ask a favor first?”

  “Yes.” Her voice had turned husky.

  “Do you think you might—I mean, would you consider—”

  “Just ask, Kade.” She tightened her grip on his fingers, willing him the strength to tell her his worries. Her heart dropped.

  “Could you wait long enough to have a baby or two with me?” He raced on, as if afraid of her answer. “You never talked about having a family, but most humans want it. I guess I assumed you might want one, too. Really, it’s not a deal breaker or anything. I—”

  “Babies? A family?” Of all things she’d imagined would be under his skin, this was the absolute last. In fact, it hadn’t entered her realm of possibility. Tears blurred her vision and she tried to blink them away. He looked at her with something akin to horror.

  “Val, I’m sorry. We don’t have to—”

  “Shut up, Kade.”

  With that, she grabbed his shoulders and leaped into his arms. He caught her as she wrapped her legs around his waist and buried her face against his shoulder. The tears wouldn’t stop. She was getting his shirt all wet and didn’t care. The happiness inflated her heart so much she thought it’d burst. It took her a minute before she realized she was sobbing in his embrace. He murmured soothing words into her hair and stroked her back with one hand. She leaned away and framed his face with her hands.

  “Yes, I want to have a family with you. But don’t you need two vampires?”

  He laughed. “No, and not
all vampires can conceive. Only adjuvants, in the same way we turn humans. We will it to be and it is.”

  “One of the Ancients was an adjuvant?”

  “Olen, and the trait is hereditary.” His tone held a note of warning. So he thought she’d have a problem with their children becoming adjuvants.

  “Kade, some of my favorite people are adjuvants.” When he relaxed, she knew she’d read his mind. His sin-loving grin told her his thoughts were now driven from down below.

  “We have to start right away, though.” His breath grew heavier as he carried her toward the bedroom. “I can’t give you my blood once I take the throne, at least until after you’re turned. And I’ll be damned if I’d let anyone else transform you.”

  “What are you doing about the throne anyway?”

  “I came up with a plan this morning.”

  “This morning? How long have you been awake?”

  “An hour or so,” he said. She pinched under his arm, making him flinch. “Ow, fuck! What was that for?”

  “I’ve been waiting for you for hours.”

  He kicked the bedroom doors open, crossed the room with her, and pressed her back onto the bed. The love in his eyes killed her ire and filled her with a sweet languor. “I’ve been waiting centuries for you.”

  His work-roughened but gentle hands dragged up her belly, taking her shirt with it. He sprinkled soft kisses along the skin he’d bared. She sucked in a breath through her teeth.

  “What did you decide?” she rasped. “About the throne.”

  “Hmmm? Oh, I’m making Ptolomy my regent.”

  “A stand-in? Will he accept it?”

  He laughed, a little on the wicked side. “He will. He’s always dabbled in politics, and he’ll be an excellent advisor. No one will question the choice. But it doesn’t matter what he wants. I’m his king now, and he’ll do what I order him to do.”

  Somehow she thought Kade would rather enjoy bossing around his never friend. Someday she’d ask him to tell her that story. Not now, though. Now Kade’s tender touch drove thought from her mind and replaced it with pure sensation, pure pleasure.

  “In less than an hour, you’ll carry my child inside of you.” His eyes burned into hers as he eased his wide body between her legs. “Val, I’ve never known what it was to be happy until I met you.”

  She gripped his hair and dragged him down closer in her embrace. “Then I’m glad we met. I love you, Kade, bad mouth and all.”

  “And I love all of you. Until eternity ends.”

  “Until eternity ends.”

  Acknowledgments

  I’ll be forever grateful to my incredible agent, Nalini Akolekar, for far and away exceeding my image of an agent’s role and for believing in my potential. I am extremely lucky to have you on my side.

  If you haven’t read it a million times, it hasn’t been said enough that it may take one to write a book, but it takes a village to birth it into the world. I couldn’t have had a better start than with those I’ve begun this journey with, and I have many people to be thankful for. First for RWA, especially members in my beloved chapters, RWA San Diego, Rose City Romance Writers, and From The Heart Romance Writers, for giving me the tools, knowledge, and support I needed and craved. Once I joined, my path accelerated to lightning speed.

  Then my brilliant, talented editor, Liz Pelletier, who has a thing or two in common with my Sailors, came into my world and offered me the opportunity of a lifetime. I often say you had more faith in my writing than I, lol. Thank you so much for your guidance and bringing me into the Entangled family. I’m eternally grateful for the Entangled team and authors for all the hard work you do, the success you foster, and the encouragement and advice you give freely. A special shout out to my publicist, Tara, because you amaze me with your speed, your support, and your responsiveness, and to Misa, for all you do to get the word out. I don’t know how you manage to coordinate everything so effectively.

  I’d be nowhere without Natalie. Chica, you kept me at it ‘til the work was done, and it never would have happened without you. Thank you to my beta readers and crit partners of all my work. From my ship: Jenny Judy, Roxanne Henry, Austyne Cook, Sobi, Iyanna Blake, Tori Newman, Jacquelyn Canez—and Nat, of course. From everywhere else: Sondrae Bennett—your feedback was phenomenal; Christy Carlyle & Louisa Kelley—if it weren’t for you, I never would’ve pitched to Liz at the Spring Intensive; Rachael Davila—for being the best friend a writer could have, and I can’t wait for your turn; Bob Richard—for making it through without blushing and for scandalously sharing a room; Cassi Carver & Melissa Cutler—for some damn good advice and exceptional cheerleading; Lisa Kessler, who was so happy with Entangled, I couldn’t help but want to join; Margaret Taylor—for helping me survive pitching and leading me to FTHRW; the Spice of Life critters—love you Kelsii, Laura, Cynthia, Laurie, Eleanor, and Shoshanna; the Chicks at Chick Swagger, Misty Dietz, Rachael Slate, Renee Ann Miller, Denise Dittus, Josie Matthews & Vonnie Davis—for being awesome and swaggery and super there for me; the FTHRW Crit Loop members—for some kickass writing and critiquing and contest winning; the NBVC Flightline peeps—for keeping me caffeinated and knowing what I meant when I said ‘the usual.’

  Thanks to my family and friends for keeping me strong when I didn’t feel it. Last, but not least, thank you to Pete and Adam. You guys will live forever as Sheriff and Boze. Your story will see the light of print.

  About the Author

  Angela McCallister had always wanted to grow up to be someone who would never grow up, and lucky her, that’s exactly what she’s done. Nothing says adventurous more than being a career US Navy Sailor with an imagination wild enough to create stories and characters with a paranormal bite. A mother of five, she’s gained plenty of story ideas from her family as well as her military experience. She’s currently stationed at Naval Base Ventura County Point Mugu in California to work on Air Traffic Control consoles and radar. She loves to hear from and meet readers and fellow authors.